Political mud-slinging will always be standard practice.
It was inevitable that at a Labour conference, the Coalition would be getting the blame for ‘rolling back the clock’ on female equality – even more so at a conference where Labour were in opposition.
Yvette Cooper, with her Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities hat on, blamed the coalition Government in no uncertain terms as she berated them for implementing drastic cuts to welfare that are having “devastating changes to women’s lives”.
Ed Miliband made the same scathing criticisms against the cuts, particularly in relation to the slow growth of the economy, although they were less focused on specific issues of gender. However, his reference to ‘child-tax credits’ and his language of ‘families’ perhaps paid some lip service to the difficulties women face.
But what made conference far more interesting were the internal debates within the Labour Party itself. This was a conference where Labour was trying to redefine itself – it was Blue versus Purple versus Red.
Women need to be at the frontline of this political redefinition as the resulting outcome will have long-lasting repercussions on Labour’s attitudes and practical policies towards gender equality.
